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IIM Kozhikode Runs on Rainwater This B-school's 96-acre campus occupies two steep hillocks. There is no independent water source for the entire institute and the average daily water consumption exceeds one lakh litres. The absence of pre-monsoon showers in mid-Kerala was causing worry elsewhere, but IIM-Kozhikode had no anxiety. Pre-monsoon showers were conspicuous by their absence in mid-Kerala this year. In the end of May, newspapers and TV channels were full of tales of water scarcity. Yet, there were no signs of anxiety at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Kozhikode, Kerala. The reason: they have been successfully harvesting rain in a big way since the beginning of the institute at Kunnamangalam in Kozhikode. The 96-acre campus occupies two steep hillocks. There is no independent water source of its own that can provide water to the whole institute. Barring the floating population, it has 350-400 inmates. The average daily water consumption exceeds one-lakh litres. Irrigation requirement for the lawn, garden & horticultural crops is not included in this. The IIM was functioning in leased premises for 2-3 years. Construction began in 2000 and in 2003, the institute shifted to the current campus. This IIM is probably the only government institution in the state that has gone for RWH in such a big scale. Though it can't boast of zero-run-off, by eye-estimation it catches rain from at least two thirds of its whole campus. (The topography is such that some portion of the water has to go from the back portion of 2 hillocks, but a major portion of run-off gets down to the front side.) Unlike many other institutions in Kerala who despite having big land holdings and 300 plus cms of rain (that means 1.2 crore litres in an acre) have to depend on external water supply, IIM is self-sufficient. (1 crore = 10 million) At the foot of the hillock, there is a huge pond of 1.5 acres dug only to catch rain water. No doubt, there was already a water source at this spot, but it was weak one and would dry up by February. This is where the arrangement becomes noticeworthy. The run-off from the upper parts of the hill is not directly fed into the main pond. It is spread in an adjoining piece of land, about five acres in extent. This is the catchment area; it has an arecanut garden and a thick layer of weed wines covering the ground. An old pond inside this garden is maintained as it is. This pond accelerates the rate of water percolation. Contributed by - |
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